"Just one thing after another" - Unknown

Stephen Krasner

International relations was about historical power relations between centers of power or states. How to think about issues without using worst-case analysis.

Characteristics of the current international system:

1 Unprecedented power of USA

2 Rising of China (and India) To supersede USA in terms of size in some time.USA has been very open to China. Policy of integrating China into the system in such a way that it becomes economicallyunfeasible to break the sytem. The addition nuclear weapons and possibilty of total mutual destruction, the system is quite stable. USA calls China a freerider.

3 EU. Unclear what it is. Not a state nor a union. High levels of independece between USA and EU. Reiterates points of Cooper. Likes France's new government.

4 Unprecedented amount of failing states. Mentions Coopers books. Iterates Fukuyamas state-building book. Many states have standard political instutions which nonetheless have no functional value.

5 Globalization. Avian influenza, AIDS, etc outbreak. Something he is certain that will happen, only a question of when. Again, Fukuyamas points. Cooperation of failed states, international criminality, illness.